Majority of Patients Likely to Move Forward with a Healthcare Decision Not Recommended by Their Physician
TrialJectory, an AI-powered digital health platform that empowers cancer patients to find advanced new treatment options and enables the pharmaceutical industry to effectively design and recruit for clinical trials, announced today results from its proprietary survey conducted among cancer patients to gain deeper insight into how COVID-19 has impacted treatment decision-making. The survey results highlight that a majority of patients (66 percent) want to be more involved in their healthcare-related treatment decisions as a result of the pandemic. Additionally, most respondents (60 percent) indicated that they would likely move forward with a healthcare decision not recommended by their physician.
“It’s been 18 months since my husband first received his stage 4, terminal, non-small cell lung cancer diagnosis,” said Sarah Ward, whose husband matched with a clinical trial using TrialJectory. “After hearing the news, I immediately started researching online. While I knew that clinical trials existed, I initially struggled to figure out how to find the right options. Then, it was like the universe intervened, and I received an online notification about TrialJectory. I completed a questionnaire on behalf of my husband and instantly received a list of trials that matched his clinical background. We shared the list with our oncologist who helped to select a study for which my husband was a perfect fit. He became the first patient to enroll in the trial and is responding well to this new treatment. We are so grateful for TrialJectory, as there is nothing else I’ve seen that truly enables patients and caregivers to take a more active role in treatment decision-making.”
Additional survey findings include:
- Nearly all (93 percent) of respondents said that they would be willing to participate in a clinical trial now, compared to pre-COVID-19.
- Over half (54 percent) of respondents said that they have been independently searching more for treatment options outside of their physician’s guidance.
- Approximately one-third (33 percent) of respondents said that telemedicine has actually decreased their level of care in their minds, indicating that, despite its convenience during COVID-19, telemedicine has not enabled some patients to establish an adequate level of trust or connection with their physicians using this platform.
“TrialJectory addresses multiple pain points that exist in the treatment of oncology,” said Dr Bernard Chinnasami, oncologist. “As a physician with extremely limited bandwidth, I always encourage and get excited when patients proactively research and present me with clinical trial opportunities, and when the information comes from TrialJectory, I already know I’m going to have a meaningful conversation with my patient about their treatment plan. I’ve yet to see anything else like TrialJectory. The speed and level of accuracy this platform uses to clinically match patients to trials is the only way for us to enroll more people in clinical trials and move the science of oncology forward.”
“The COVID pandemic impacted all areas of daily life, including medical care, and cancer patients progressively struggled to receive treatment due to surgery and procedure cancellations,” concluded Tzvia Bader, TrialJectory CEO and Co-Founder. “Healthcare delivery during COVID created a paradigm shift among cancer patients. We are seeing increased demand among patients to take on a much larger role than ever before and obtain a seat at the table when it’s time to make decisions about their treatment. Historically, doctors and hospitals primarily drove these decisions, with limited input from patients and their families.”
Bader continued, “TrialJectory believes and supports the notion that increased patient engagement is becoming a permanent part of the cancer treatment process and will ultimately result in better outcomes. TrialJectory is committed to arming patients with access to knowledge and empowering them to control their cancer journey. To challenge the status quo and truly fix what’s wrong with our healthcare system, we need to change the dynamic of the doctor-hospital-patient relationship. At its core, cancer treatment should be solely focused on the needs of patients; therefore, we need to hear their voices and understand their concerns.”
About TrialJectory
TrialJectory is a patient-first digital health company with a mission to democratize access to advanced cancer treatment. Recognized by TIME as one of “The 100 Best Inventions of 2020” and named an honoree in the AI and data category for Fast Company’s “2021 World Changing Ideas Awards,” TrialJectory uses artificial intelligence (AI) to inform and empower cancer patients to own their treatment journey. The only offering of its kind, TrialJectory also captures and analyzes real-world patient data that can be used to further evolve the oncology research landscape. For more information, please visit www.trialjectory.com, and follow the Company on Facebook and LinkedIn.
